


Sometimes Heroes Do Need Help

by NaturalDisaster_Goddess



Category: Ranger's Apprentice - John Flanagan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe-Vigilante Group, Alyss is a trans girl, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Halt is so done with his son's stupid decisions, Jenny is a saint, Modern Setting, More than Canon Typical Violence in later chapters, Prejudice in later chpters, Rangers are British SHEILD/Avengers, Rngers have powers, Super Made Up Technology, Why?, Will is a Mess, because i fucking said so, let him sleep
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-25
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-05 17:40:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17923385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NaturalDisaster_Goddess/pseuds/NaturalDisaster_Goddess
Summary: "Go to College." they said."Get a job." they said."It won't interfere with patrols or missions." they said.Will was going to kill those three.





	1. Prologue: Will Makes A Very Bad Decision(And Helt Is So Done)

**Author's Note:**

> Someone asked for a Coffee Shop AU, College AU, and Vigilante Group AU on Tumblr and I interpreted it as "do all of them in the same fic" and thus this was born. If I feel a chapter merits specific warnings I'll put them here so just keep that in mind. Enjoy.  
> Italics=thoughts  
> 'words'=telepathic speech

This was the most important decision Will had ever been faced with.

Coffee or Red Bull.

Red Bull had more caffeine, but coffee tasted better.

Which did he need more.

Coffee…Red Bull...Both?

 _Fuck it_. He thought dumping the Red Bull into his French Press followed by nearly half a cup of coffee grounds.

_I got classes today, and work, exams in two weeks, and patrols. I earned this._

‘Earned what?’ the familiar gruff voice sounded in his head.

‘This.’ Will thought back, narrowing his eyes at the coffee diffusing through the fizzy yellow liquid.

‘Will, are you making coffee with Red Bull?’

Will didn’t respond, but the memory sent a subconscious affirmation anyway.

‘Will don’t you dare drink that you will die, and how dare you deface the holy perfection that is coffee by doing this.’

‘Shut up and let me die Halt.’ Will responded to his guardian’s mental voice as he poured the unholy concoction into a travel mug. Glancing around the counter he spied a tiny red bottle. He looked back and forth between it and the lethal mixture in his mug, and before he could talk himself out of it he dumped the grape flavored 5-hour-energy in with his it-can-barely-be-called-coffee.

‘Oh God what did you do?’

Will narrowed his eyes and downed the first quarter of the drink in a single gulp. Then immediately coughed as his tongue was assaulted by the taste of coffee mixed with artificial grape, medicine, sugar, and regret.

‘Don’t expect me to pay the bills when you end up in a hospital from that.’ Halt scolded.

Will walked out the front door of his apartment, stuck in his headphones and flipped to what he knew from experience was a sure-fire way to get Halt to stop reading his mind: Shakira. The words of the Spanish pop artist flooded Will’s ears, and he felt Halt let out the loudest groan and immediately close off the mental pathway to Will’s mind. With a satisfied smirk Will made his way down the stairs and to his first class of the day.


	2. Chapter 1: Jenny Is A SaintTM

Hardly a moment to spare Will slipped through the closing doors of the tube wishing, not for the first time, that Halt and Crowley weren’t so strict about not using his powers outside the uniform. It would make getting places so much easier. Alas, he was stuck taking the tube everywhere.

Double checking that his laptop bag and mandola case were both securely fastened to his person he gazed out the window and choked down another sip of his caffeine-coma-waiting-to-happen.

On the bright side of things, today was Tuesday, so he would see George and Alyss at work when they came in for their own weekly splurge on their caffeine fixes.

First though, programming class.

It got boring sitting around listening to someone tell you something you already knew, so really no one could blame him for wanting to spice things up a little.

OK when his version of “spicing things up a little” was borderline illegal they definitely could, and there was no way Halt and Crowley wouldn’t find out.

_Maybe Gilan will back me up._ Will thought as he, yet again, made his professor’s computer blast a hodge podge of bird calls from the speakers while the display flashed pink.

Will continued randomly screwing with his professor’s computer until she eventually dismissed class. A few keystrokes ensured that any investigation into the computer’s strange behavior wouldn’t be traced back to him, and Will packed up his laptop and bee-lined for the door.

Ten minutes of running found him stepping across the threshold of Jenny’s cafe “The Steaming Mug”.

“Morning Will.” the cheery blonde herself called to him. How Jenny managed to run both this cafe and her restaurant “The Heaped Platter” while maintaining this level of energy was beyond him.

“Morning Jenny.” he replied moving swiftly into the break room to pull on the cafe’s uniform apron.

He walked back into the main area and took his place behind the register while Jenny stocked the display case with her latest batch of heavenly pastries.

“Did you eat breakfast today?” Jenny inquired with a stern look just daring him to lie to her.

“Uhh…” he trailed off both not wanting to lie and trigger her rage, but also not wanting to admit that no, he hadn’t had breakfast.

Jenny rolled her eyes and grabbed one of his favorite chocolate-raspberry muffins from the case and shoved it into his hand.

“Here, but don’t expect me to give you free food next time you forget to eat.” she said even though they both knew she made extra muffins specifically for this purpose.

“Thank you.” Will said reverently taking a bite of the fruit-and-chocolate heaven.

Business progressed as usual for the next few hours, then they walked in.

Two of Will’s other childhood friends; George and Alyss.

The law school student was decked out in a sharp gray suit that didn’t quite fit his scarecrow frame.

And chatting amiably with him, was Alyss. Clothed in a short white dress with black leggings, white flats, and a navy half-sleeved blazer, she looked incredible. Her platinum blonde hair fell in loose waves down her back topped by a braided crown framing her gently smiling face.

Will smiled, “Hey guys, usuals?”

“As always.” Alyss responded moving to stand by the counter while George reclaimed their usual seats.

Alyss stood quietly and watched as he prepared the drinks.

“How are your injections going?” Will asked looking up from his work.

Alyss smiled a little brighter, “Good, everything is working properly. It’s burning a hole through my wallet, but it is worth it.”

“Glad to hear it,” Will responded holding out the two cups, “and you know my door’s always open if you need help with anything. Though we all know you’re quite capable of whatever you put your mind to.”

“Of course.” Alyss said simply as she grabbed the drinks her fingers brushing Will’s for a moment sending an electric shock up his arm that he was certain stopped his heart.

Jenny sidled up next to him and jabbed and elbow into his side, “Stop staring.”

“I’m not staring!” Will protested rubbing his side.

Jenny lifted both her eyebrows and hummed disbelievingly. Then she strode back into the kitchen leaving Will to ponder his thoughts.

Will sighed and looked back to the door glancing at the clock above the glass pane. Just a few more hours.

A few more hours and the real fun of the day would start.

 


	3. Halt Knows Everything(The Plot Thickens)

The sun had set and the exhaustion of his total neglect for a healthy sleeping schedule for the past however-many-weeks had faded with it.

This was what he could always look forward to.

Leaping out his window with the trademark uniform of the Rangers unfolding across his body. His scope materialized over his right eye outlining the world in fluorescent green. Looking to the ground Will picked his landing spot, lifted his fingers to his mouth, and whistled. With an affirmative alert popping into his vision Will focused on his chosen spot, and then he was there, sliding to a stop on the asphalt

Not a second later his sleek black motorcycle slid to a silent halt beside him. Will swung himself aboard the vehicle and the indescribable voice of his trusty AI sounded in his ear.

“Took you long enough.” the AI snarked.

“Missed you too Tug,” Will responded, “What have we got tonight?”

“Looks like a mugging in progress half a mile away.” Tug answered.

“Then let’s get to it.”

Human and AI worked seamlessly to get the bike moving, and in less than a second Will was streaking away from the building and towards the alleyway in which Tug had found trouble.

They soon turned into the narrow alley and sure enough a group of armed men and women had ganged up on two teenage boys. Trusting Tug to take the lead Will released the handlebars and unfolded his collapsible bow in his hand. Drawing and knocking an arrow in the time it took to breathe Will released a blunt tipped arrow into the side of one woman’s head right behind her ear. The woman fell to the ground unconscious and the three others of her crew turned to see a figure that haunted their nightmares.

Approaching to quickly to loose another arrow Will collapsed his bow and lifted his legs to crouch atop the bike. After a quick survey of the still conscious crooks Will chose his target, and leapt off the bike. He reached the apex of his jump, and then instantaneously he was in front of one of the muggers slamming his foot into the man’s chest. Criminal and vigilante fell to the ground. Will tucked himself into a roll and whipped his arm around, one of his strikers in hand, to slam the heavy brass into the man’s head when he tried to rise.

“It’s Ether!” one of the remaining criminals shouted fearfully.

Will smirked at the sound of his codename; never hurt to have a reputation among criminals. Though the urban legends of the Rangers were often more than enough.

Will rose silently to his feet and unsheathed his knives.

One of the criminals raised his gun and fired a shot.

There was burst of fire from the muzzle flash, and the lethal projectile carved through the air right towards Will’s heart.

But Will was no longer there.

He had already reappeared behind the fool who’d fired and kicked out the man’s knee knocking the hilt of his knife against the man’s head as he fell.

Three down Will turned to the fourth. The last one was shaking in fear their grip on their knife trembling like a leaf in a hurricane. They looked into Will’s face and their shaky grip went lax; the knife clattered to the ground and the criminal threw their hands up to their head.

Will stepped forward and swiftly knocked them out; then hit the button on his scope that would send someone to collect the unconscious bodies. He looked back to the two boys he’d rescued to make sure neither had any injuries that would require a hospital then climbed back onto Tug and sped out of the alley in search of the next disturbance.

He spent half an hour riding through the city with little happening before Tug spoke.

“Your Mom’s calling,” he said, “better see what he wants.”

Will chuckled and accepted the call that appeared on his scope display, “Hi Void.”

“Will, are you busy?” Crowley said tiredly, uncharacteristically somber.

“Not right now. What’s happening? Something wrong?” Will inquired.

Crowley didn’t really answer, “I need you to meet Halt and I at the Gathering Grounds, as soon as you can.”

“On my way.”

The call disconnected and Will tilted as Tug turned automatically for the Gathering Grounds. What had happened? Why did Halt and Crowley need to see him? Was it something he’d done? Was it a mission?

The thoughts wouldn’t leave him alone. Even when he rode Tug up to the nondescript apartment building that housed the Gathering Grounds. He stepped into the elevator a stuck his key into the slot revealing the button he wanted. The elevator moved upwards at the push of the button and Will stood back and waited fingers tapping anxiously on his thigh.

The elevator ground to a stop and the doors opened. The Gathering Grounds weren’t really ‘grounds’ at all, the name was merely a nod to when the Rangers had held the Gathering in a forest clearing. The current location was an old ballroom; gray, white, and black marble floors, arching gray-white columns, and dozens of offshooting bedrooms. Positioned right in the middle was a massive table for meals, and at the back was a door leading to the main office where Crowley spent most of his time.

The room appeared to be empty, but you could never be sure with Rangers, especially Halt and Crowley. Will stepped out of the elevator, his uniform shifting in color to match the dull values of the surrounding walls, but stepped no further.

‘We’re in the office.’ Halt’s voice sounded in his mind. One would think a telepath would be able to send their thoughts into someone’s mind gently, or at least gracefully. Nope, Halt’s mental voice always crashed into Will’s head with all the grace and subtlety of a high speed train wreck. Ironic considering that Halt was one of the quietest and most graceful people Will knew, if not especially well-mannered.

“Ok.’ Will responded and walked forward keeping his ears attuned for the complete silence that would signal Crowley trying to sneak up on him as he usually did. He was halfway across the room, and still no complete lack of sound. Will furrowed his eyebrows; Crowley never passed up a chance to attempt to sneak up on someone. So why was he not even trying now? Will’s heart beat a little faster and, almost unconsciously, he warped to the office door and pushed it open.

Halt and Crowley sat inside, cowls of their uniforms pushed back, bent over several papers. The air was heavy and oppressive, and pushed down Will’s usual excitement at seeing his mentor.

“Will, good you made it, have a seat.” Crowley said distractedly not looking up from his papers.

Will pulled back his cowl and his scope folded back into the piece of metal hooked behind his ear and sat in the chair beside Hat, “What’s going on? Did something happen?”

Halt snorted, “No, we called you for a friendly chat.” Will stuck his tongue out at his mentor, ‘Oh shut up, I know you’re happy to see me.’

‘Be nice if it were better circumstances.’

Will looked at Crowley waiting to hear the real reason he’d been called in.

Crowley sighed, “Alistair’s gone missing.”

Will froze, Alistair was the Ranger in one of the sectors bordering his. He was a technopath, a good one too. He had helped spearhead the designs for the Ranger AIs; if he was missing…

“Any idea what happened yet?” Will asked.

“No,” Crowley responded, “he just disappeared and hasn’t checked in in over a week.”

Crowley grabbed a file off his desk and handed it to Will, “I want you to head the investigation; his is all the information we have so far.”

Will glanced through the file, “Will anyone else be involved?”

“Horace is heading the official police investigation,” Crowley responded, “and of course Halt will be there too, the three have you have proven to be a formidable team in the past.”

Will nodded,”This everything?”

Crowley nodded, “That’s what we’ve got, you’re free to head out.”

Will stood up to leave.

“And don’t think I don’t know what you were doing in your programming class today,” Halt said, then he turned to Will, “we are going to be having words later.”

Will tensed and immediately warped out the door and over to the elevator pushing the button as calmly as he could given the circumstances.

 


End file.
